Nighttime Surprise
by kisshuismylife
Summary: Ichigo, Lettuce, and Pudding have waited five years for the Cyniclons to return. When they do return, however, they've got a very special surprise... READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE END! IT CONTAINS IMPORTANT STORY INFO!
1. Nighttime Surprise

**Nighttime Surprise**

It was five years after the final battle between the Mews and Deep Blue. Ichigo, Lettuce and Pudding really missed the Cyniclons, and had quit Café Mew Mew after Ryou started saying how glad he was they were gone.

The girls stayed in touch, and spent a lot of time talking in Ichigo's room. Ichigo had broken up with Aoyama a week after the battle, and he had moved to England soon after. Since then she had been single, waiting for Kisshu to return.

Lettuce and Pudding had also remained single, and Pudding had managed to convince her father that marrying someone over twice her age wasn't going to be a good idea.

Lettuce had had several boys ask her out, but she always said no. She couldn't see herself with anyone besides Pai, so she rejected everyone else- politely, of course.

Ichigo sighed. It was getting late, so she went to get her pajamas on. As always before bed, she opened her window and said softly, "I miss you, Kisshu…." She looked out the window, but as usual, saw nothing but stars in the sky. Sighing, she left the window open, since it was nice out, and climbed into her bed, turning out the light. Little did she know, tonight would be very surprising….

After Kisshu, Pai and Taruto had returned to Cyniclonia, they had restored the planet, and were now hailed as heroes. For the past five years, they had helped their people move to the surface of the planet, build homes, and create a new system of government after they told the Council of Deep Blue's true intentions.

Now, however, the three brothers were on their way back to Earth, to see the Earth girls they loved. They had obtained permission to live on Earth if it wasn't possible to bring Ichigo, Lettuce, and Pudding back to Cyniclonia.

They arrived at around midnight, and met in the main room, then teleported off to find their loved ones.

_**With Pai: **_Pai teleported outside Lettuce's window, and carefully looked in. To his surprise and worry, Lettuce was sitting on her bed, her face buried in her hands. He tapped on the window, and her head shot up. When she saw him, she looked shocked. She hesitantly came over to the window, and opened it. "Pai?" she asked softly. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, it's really me," Pai said. "But why were you crying?"

"I-I missed you…." Lettuce said, blushing. "Um… do you want to come in?"

"Sure," Pai said. He teleported into the room, and Lettuce immediately hugged him. Pai hugged her back, and was startled when she asked, "Couldn't you have come back sooner?"

"I'm sorry," Pai said. "We were restoring the planet, and setting up a new government structure after the fiasco with Deep Blue took a while, as did building a city. And in a way, we were waiting."

"Waiting? For what?" Lettuce asked, puzzled.

"Kisshu and I were both waiting until you and Ichigo turned eighteen," Pai said. "Before I go into why, though, I have a question for you." He took a small box out of his pocket, and then went down on one knee, opening the box. "Lettuce, will you marry me?" he asked.

Lettuce smiled brightly, and said, "Yes!"

Pai smiled too, and took her right hand, then slid the gold ring, which had a small peridot porpoise on it, onto Lettuce's ring finger. "It's so cute, where'd you find this?" Lettuce asked.

"Kisshu carved it," Pai said. "The strange thing is, I didn't even have to blackmail him. He jumped at the chance."

Lettuce giggled, and wrapped her arms around Pai's neck, then pulled him into a kiss.

_**With Taruto: **_Taruto nervously teleported to Pudding's house, and started looking in windows. The second one he found was apparently Pudding's bedroom, because she was sleeping in a bed in there. She looked unhappy, though, and Taruto teleported into the room.

The noise seemed to have woken her, because she sat up, rubbing her eyes. Then she noticed Taruto, and looked shocked. "Taru-Taru?" she whispered. She got out of bed as Taruto said, "Hey, Monkey."

Pudding threw herself at Taruto, knocking them both to the floor as she cried, "Taru-Taru, you're here!"

"Yeah, I'm here- but I can't breathe," Taruto said.

Pudding smiled and released her death grip on him. "Is Taru-Taru staying?" she asked hopefully.

Taruto smiled. "I'm staying," he said- and immediately got half-strangled again by a very happy Pudding.

_**With Kisshu: **_Kisshu teleported outside Ichigo's window, and was surprised to find it open. He carefully climbed in the window, not wanting to wake Ichigo. He quietly went over to the bed, looking down at her. She was even more beautiful than she had been when they first met, and she looked so peaceful.

Kisshu carefully took his boots off, and slid into the bed with her. He was shocked when she snuggled against him, slipping her arms around his waist. He settled down, feeling her snuggle closer. He looked down at her as she mumbled something that sounded like 'cinnamon', but she was still sleeping. He carefully reached out and stroked her hair, and she purred softly, nuzzling into his hand.

Kisshu relaxed as Ichigo continued purring, and soon he was almost asleep- at least until a loud clap of thunder interrupted this peaceful scene. He felt Ichigo shiver, and then, as another clap of thunder was heard, her eyes opened. When she saw that she was hugging him, she squeaked, alarmed. "Koneko-chan, I'm not going to hurt you," Kisshu said softly.

Ichigo looked up at his face, and whispered, "Kisshu?"

Kisshu smirked as he said, "That's my name, don't wear it out."

"You're back!" Ichigo said happily, and hugged him tightly.

Kisshu was shocked, and asked, "You really missed me?"

"Yes," Ichigo said, giggling at the look on his face. "It's been five YEARS, Kish. You'll be pleased to know that I dumped Aoyama a week after you left."

"YAY!" Kisshu said. "Wait, does that mean you love me?"

"Of course," Ichigo said happily. "So, are Pai and Taruto back to make Lettuce and Pudding happy?"

"Yep," Kisshu said. He turned on her light, and said, "Koneko-chan, get up for a minute."

"Why?" Ichigo asked.

"Just humor me," Kisshu said. He got up as Ichigo let go of him, and she got up too. Kisshu reached into his pocket, and took out a small box. Ichigo's hands flew to her mouth as Kisshu went down on one knee and opened the box, saying, "Momomiya Ichigo, will you marry me?"

"I'd love to, Kish!" Ichigo said happily. Kisshu took her right hand, and slid a gold ring with a pink cat-shaped diamond on it onto her ring finger. As soon as he let go of her hand, Ichigo threw herself at him and kissed him passionately. He kissed back with equal passion, holding her close.

_**The next morning, with Pai and Lettuce: **_The new couple had spent the night in Pai's room, and now Lettuce was taking Pai to meet her parents. "Don't worry, they know," Lettuce told Pai.

Pai looked at her, and smiled. "I trust you," he said, making Lettuce blush. Then he teleported to her room.

Almost as soon as they landed, they heard running footsteps, and Lettuce's mother ran in, then stopped dead. "Morning Mom," Lettuce said.

"Explanation, please," Mrs. Midorikawa said.

"Pai asked me to marry him!" Lettuce cried happily. She held up her right hand, so her mother could see her engagement ring.

"Oh, that's so sweet," Mrs. Midorikawa said. "Pai, you realize Lettuce has been waiting for you for five years, right?"

"She told me last night," Pai said. "I'm very lucky."

"Are your brothers out confessing their love?" Mrs. Midorikawa asked.

"Yup," Pai said. "If Taruto hasn't done so, however, he's in for it. Pudding's waited long enough."

"Let's hope she didn't strangle him," Lettuce said.

"I guess we should go check on them," Pai said.

"You two have fun," Mrs. Midorikawa said.

"Thanks," Lettuce said.

"It was nice to meet you, Mrs. Midorikawa," Pai said, bowing.

"You too, Pai," Mrs. Midorikawa said.

Pai smiled and teleported out with Lettuce.

_**With Taruto and Pudding: **_The two of them were making breakfast for Pudding's siblings when Pai teleported in with Lettuce, and Taruto looked up, then said, "YES, Pai, I confessed- and nearly got strangled."

"We were just coming to make sure Pudding didn't go overboard," Lettuce said.

"And to make sure you two weren't eating candy," Pai added.

"It's too early for candy," Pudding said. "Would Lettuce-oneechan and Pai-oniichan like some pancakes?"

"Sure, that's really nice of you," Lettuce said.

"Thanks," Pai said.

_**With Kisshu and Ichigo: **_They both woke up the next morning, and Ichigo said, "I'm so glad that wasn't just a dream…."

"Me too," Kisshu said. "Where are your parents?"

"They're supposed to be back from my aunt's sometime today; they were taking care of her because she was sick," Ichigo said. Suddenly her cell phone rang, and she said, "That's odd, it's Ryou. I'll turn on speakerphone so you can hear too."

She picked up, turning on speakerphone, and asked, "What is it now, Ryou? I thought I told you that I wasn't coming back five years ago."

"_The computers sensed alien activity, and I can't contact Lettuce and Pudding for some reason," _Ryou said. _"I need you to get over here!"_

"They're probably with their boyfriends, I wouldn't worry about it," Ichigo said. "Oh, and I've got great news!"

"_What is it?" _Ryou asked.

"Kisshu asked me to marry him!" Ichigo said happily. She didn't hear anything except a crash, and giggled, then hung up. "I think he fainted," she told Kisshu. "I've always wanted to make him faint; he'd be totally humiliated."

Kisshu snickered and said, "I wonder what he'll think when he hears Lettuce is engaged to Pai…"

Ichigo giggled, but then her cell phone rang again. "Keiichiro," she said. Picking up, she said, "Hi Keiichiro, is this about Ryou?"

"_Do you know why he's unconscious on the floor?" _Keiichiro asked.

"I told him that Kisshu and I are engaged," Ichigo said.

"_Oh, congratulations," _Keiichiro said. _"Do your parents know yet?"_

"They're not home till later, so no," Ichigo said.

"_Well, good luck," _Keiichiro said. _"I hope you'll be happy together."_

"I think we will, thanks!" Ichigo said, and hung up.

"He's nice," Kisshu said.

"Yup, way nicer than Ryou," Ichigo said.

They suddenly heard noises at the front door, and Ichigo said, "I wonder if that's my parents…"

"Let's go see," Kisshu said- just as they heard, "Ichigo, we're home!"

"Coming," Ichigo called back, and said to Kisshu, "They know, so don't worry about it." Then she pulled him downstairs.

They found Sakura and Shintaro sorting out bags in the front hall, and Sakura looked up. "Oh, you're back, Kisshu?" she asked.

"Yep, and I couldn't be happier," Kisshu said.

"Mom, guess what?" Ichigo said.

"What?" Sakura asked.

"Kisshu asked me to marry him, and I said yes!" Ichigo said happily.

"Oh, that's wonderful, congratulations," Sakura said, nudging Shintaro.

"You're going to take good care of her, right?" Shintaro asked Kisshu.

"Of course," Kisshu said. "Ichigo is the love of my life, why wouldn't I take good care of her?"

"Just making sure," Shintaro said.

"Kisshu, are you going to live here?" Sakura asked.

"That's what I wanted to talk about," Kisshu said. "Because of Ichigo's part in saving my home, she, Lettuce, and Pudding have all been invited to live with us. We've been given permission to bring them back to Cyniclonia, and I was going to ask Ichigo and you two if it's okay for her to come back home with me."

"Will you be able to visit?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, it's only about a nine-hour flight," Kisshu said. "And you two can at least come to stay for the wedding."

"Ichigo, what about Moe and Miwa?" Shintaro asked. "You told them, right?"

"Yeah," Ichigo said. "Kish, can I invite them too? We've know each other since we were three, it wouldn't be fair to them not to let them come."

"Sure," Kisshu said, smiling.

"How soon are you leaving?" Sakura asked.

"I was thinking I'd bring Ichigo back alone, and give her some time to get settled in before having our wedding," Kisshu said. "I think that was Pai's plan with Lettuce, too. Then when we've got everything ready, we'll come back and get whoever else is coming. Is that okay?"

"I think that's a good idea," Sakura said. "But how are you going to contact us?"

"Ichigo's got a cell phone, right?" Kisshu asked.

"Yep," Ichigo said. "Will it get service so far away?"

"Mine does, and I stole it from that big store downtown," Kisshu said. "Don't worry, you can use mine if yours doesn't work."

"Okay!" Ichigo said. "Should I start packing?"

"Good idea, do you want help?" Kisshu asked.

"Sure, thanks," Ichigo said. "I should call Moe and Miwa, too."

Kisshu followed her upstairs, and sat on the bed as she dialed a number into her phone. Ichigo waited, and then Miwa's voice said, _"Ichigo, what's up?"_

"Get Moe and come over, I don't want to say this over the phone," Ichigo said.

"_Okay!" _Miwa said, and hung up.

Ichigo smiled and said, "They'll be here soon, let's get started while we're waiting."

Kisshu smiled back and watched Ichigo take two large suitcases out of her closet. She then said, "Can you take the drawers out of my dresser? It'll be easier to get stuff out."

"Sure!" Kisshu said happily.

"Try not to make a mess," Ichigo said. She giggled when Kisshu pouted. He took the first drawer out, and set it down. Ichigo started packing everything into the suitcases, with some help from Kisshu.

When Kisshu reached Ichigo's underwear drawer, though, he lost focus. Ichigo noticed he was going through it, and said warningly, "Kisshu…."

"Sorry Koneko-chan," Kisshu said, smirking. "I just can't help it!"

Ichigo sighed, shaking her head with a smile. Suddenly the doorbell rang, and Ichigo said, "That's probably Moe and Miwa. Let's go see!" She took Kisshu's hand and pulled him downstairs. Sakura was letting Moe and Miwa in, and they both looked startled when they saw Kisshu. "Kisshu, you're back?" Moe asked.

"Yeah," Kisshu said. "What's your name?"

"Sorry, I'm Moe, and this is Miwa," Moe said.

"Hi Kisshu!" Miwa said.

"Hi," Kisshu said.

"Ichigo, what did you want to tell us?" Moe asked.

"Kisshu asked me to marry him!" Ichigo said happily.

"That's great!" Miwa said. "Congratulations!"

"When's the wedding?" Moe asked.

"I thought I'd give Ichigo some time to settle in before having any big events," Kisshu said. "Pai and I got permission to bring Lettuce and Ichigo back with us."

"What about Taruto and Pudding?" Miwa asked.

"Pudding's not old enough to get married, so I think Taruto's going to stay here until she's of age," Kisshu said.

"So Ichigo, you're going to visit, right?" Moe asked.

"Yup," Ichigo said. "And you two are definitely invited to my wedding."

"Great!" Moe and Miwa chorused.

"Koneko-chan, we should finish packing your stuff," Kisshu said. "Pai was ordered to report back as soon as we came to a decision."

"Okay," Ichigo said. "Moe, Miwa, it was nice to see you again."

"Thanks, and don't forget to visit," Moe said. She and Miwa hugged Ichigo and Kisshu together, then waved and left. Ichigo headed back upstairs with Kisshu, and they finished packing up her stuff.

Sakura and Shintaro came in as Kisshu closed the second suitcase. "You're going?" Sakura asked.

"Koneko-chan, do you have everything?" Kisshu asked.

Ichigo looked around her room one more time, and finally said, "Yep, I think that's it." She went to her parents and hugged them, then said, "Bye, I'll let you know when the wedding is."

"Thanks," Sakura said. "Have fun, and good luck."

"We will, and thanks," Ichigo said.

"And thanks for agreeing," Kisshu added. "It was nice to finally meet you both."

Sakura smiled and said, "We wouldn't say no, not after seeing how happy you made Ichigo."

Kisshu smiled back, and picked up the suitcases. Ichigo got her backpack, and grabbed Kisshu's shoulder, waving to her parents. They waved back as Kisshu teleported to the ship.

When they landed in Kisshu's room, they set Ichigo's stuff down, and Kisshu said, "I think we should go find Pai. He's probably wondering why I haven't contacted him."

"Okay," Ichigo said. "So what does Lettuce's engagement ring look like?"

"It's a gold band with a little porpoise made of peridot," Kisshu said. "Pai had me do the carving."

"Wow, you carved these?" Ichigo asked as they walked out of the room.

"Carving is my hobby," Kisshu said. "Gemstones are more difficult than wood, but I think both carvings came out well."

"Well, I love mine," Ichigo said.

Kisshu smiled, and they went to the main room, just as Pai teleported in with Lettuce and a few suitcases. "You got here before me?" Pai asked.

"Yup," Kisshu said. "Hi Lettuce."

"Hi," Lettuce said. "Thanks for making this ring, I love it!"

"Sure," Kisshu said. "Koneko-chan, show her yours."

Ichigo showed Lettuce her ring, and Lettuce said, "That's so cute!"

"I agree," Ichigo said. She looked at Pai and said, "Thanks for making Lettuce's dream come true."

"Thanks for making Kisshu's dream come true," Pai replied. "So how long did it take you to miss Kisshu?"

"24 hours," Ichigo said.

"I thought you said you dumped the treehugger a week after the battle," Kisshu commented.

"I didn't see him for a week after the battle; I was a bit busy," Ichigo said.

"With what?" Kisshu asked.

"I…. um…." Ichigo said uncomfortably.

"We got a week off from the Café after the battle, and Ichigo spent every waking moment of that week either sobbing or trying to convince the rest of us that she'd be better off dead for choosing Aoyama over you," Lettuce said. "I really think you should have said goodbye, at least."

Kisshu looked at Ichigo, who buried her face in her hands and asked, "Lettuce, did you have to tell Kisshu all that?"

"I figured he should know," Lettuce said.

"You weren't exactly happy either," Ichigo commented.

"Neither was Pudding," Lettuce replied. "I spent the majority of the last five years sleeping over at her house, because she was so broken up over Taruto that she couldn't sleep. I'm just glad she finally got over hating Pai."

"Me too," Ichigo said. "Especially since you and he are now engaged; I think it would put a strain on your friendship if she still wanted to take Pai down."

"Don't mention that part of the battle when we're on Cyniclonia," Kisshu said. "Killing children is illegal on our planet, and the laws are very strict about it. If someone kills a child, they get the death penalty. We didn't even tell Pai and Taruto's parents about that."

"We won't mention it," Ichigo said. "And Pudding's got another three years to get used to the idea."

"Good," Kisshu said. "Pai, do you need help flying the ship?"

"I need a copilot, so yes," Pai said. "Why don't you take Lettuce and Ichigo back to your room, and meet me in the control room."

"'Kay," Kisshu said. He took both Ichigo and Lettuce by the shoulder, and teleported to his room. "It's about a nine-hour flight," he said when they landed. "It's also a four and a half-hour time difference, so you might want to get some sleep on the way; it'll be about 2 PM when we get there."

"Okay, thanks Kish," Ichigo said. Kisshu kissed her and teleported out.

Ichigo and Lettuce both settled down on Kisshu's bed, excited about going to a new planet.

**Okay, unlike most of my stories lately, this WILL be continued. I think I've got a plan, and it involves 4-5 very long chapters, so please tell me what you think! I'd like to hear all your thoughts on this idea, and don't worry, I'll work on my other stories soon! Please Review!**


	2. Cyniclonia: Part 1

**Cyniclonia**

Eventually Ichigo and Lettuce fell asleep on Kisshu's bed as the ship continued flying.

Six hours later, Kisshu teleported in and woke them both up. "We're here," he said when they were awake. "Leave your stuff, I'll have someone come get it later. We've been called to meet with Hideki-sama, my leader."

Lettuce and Ichigo got up and straightened their hair and clothes. Then Kisshu teleported them to the main room, where Pai was waiting. Pai took Lettuce's hand, and Kisshu took Ichigo's. Then the two Cyniclons teleported their fiancées to what looked like a huge mansion's gates. There were two guards in front of the gate, and Kisshu walked up to one of them. "We were told Hideki-sama is waiting," he said.

"That's correct," the guard said. He and his partner pulled the gates open, and Kisshu motioned to the others, who followed him up to the front door, just as it opened. Another guard bowed and let them in, then said, "Follow me."

Kisshu and the others obeyed, and the guard led them to a large set of doors, then knocked. "Come in," they heard. The guard opened the doors, and motioned for Kisshu and the others to go in.

Kisshu walked to the center of the room and went down on one knee, the others copying him. A Cyniclon man with graying brown hair rose from a throne-like chair, and said, "Please, get up."

Kisshu, Ichigo, Pai, and Lettuce got up, and the man said, "Welcome back, Kisshu and Pai, and welcome to you, Mew Ichigo and Mew Lettuce. I am the leader of the Cyniclons, known to my people as Hideki-sama."

"It's an honor to meet you," Ichigo said. "I'm Ichigo."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," Hideki-sama said. "And I assume your friend is Mew Lettuce?"

"Please just call me Lettuce," Lettuce said. "It's an honor to meet you."

"Thank you, Lettuce, it's a pleasure to meet you as well," Hideki-sama said. "But where is Taruto?"

"Mew Pudding isn't old enough to be away from her family, so Taruto is staying on Earth until she's of age," Pai explained.

"Very well," Hideki-sama said. "I suppose you brought Lettuce and Ichigo back so they can settle in?"

"Yes, I think it's best if they have the chance to learn about their new home before having any big events," Kisshu said. "We informed their families and Ichigo's childhood friends that we'll contact them when they've settled in and we've got the weddings planned."

"That sounds fine," Hideki-sama said. "I assume you'd like to take them home?"

"With your permission," Pai replied.

"Of course," Hideki-sama said. "Ichigo, Lettuce, welcome to Cyniclonia."

"Thank you, Hideki-sama," Ichigo and Lettuce said together. The four of them bowed, and then Kisshu and Pai teleported the girls to the front of a huge mansion.

"Wow, this is where you live?" Ichigo asked. "This is bigger than Mint's mansion."

"We live here with my parents," Pai said. "They're both eager to meet you; let's go in." He led the way to the door, and as he reached it, it was opened by a Cyniclon man in a butler's uniform. "Master Pai, welcome back," he said. "Your mother is waiting in the family room; your father had a meeting."

"Thank you," Pai said. He led the others in, and to a room off the main room. A Cyniclon woman who looked a lot like Taruto got off one of the sofas when she saw them, then ran over. "I'm so glad you're back!" she said. "I see it went well?"

"Yes, Mom, you had nothing to worry about," Pai said, hugging his mother. "Mom, this is Midorikawa Lettuce, my fiancée."

"It's nice to meet you," Lettuce said.

"You too, Lettuce," the woman said, smiling. "You and Ichigo can call me Yuki."

"Aunt Yuki, this is my fiancée, Momomiya Ichigo," Kisshu said.

"It's nice to meet you, Yuki," Ichigo said.

"You too, Ichigo," Yuki said. "I'm glad you and Kisshu are together now."

"Me too," Ichigo said. "I really missed him."

"He missed you too," Yuki said. "The past five years were busy, but Kisshu spent most of his spare time moping."

"Ichigo spent the last five years crying, and the first year after he left, she was repeatedly telling me she'd be better off dead," Lettuce said. "We weren't very busy after we quit working for Ryou, and I think it was really hard on Ichigo, not having Kisshu around."

"Why did you quit?" Pai asked.

"Ryou kept saying how happy he was that you guys were gone, and we got fed up with him and quit," Ichigo said. "He's racist. We tried to ignore it at first, but then he called Kisshu a freak, and I beat him up, and then told him he was dead meat if he tried to make me work for him again. And then he said bad things about Pai and Taruto too, and Lettuce beat him up the day after I did, and then Pudding smashed a plate over his head and beat him up the day after that."

"Didn't you guys get in trouble?" Kisshu asked.

"No, Keiichiro was fed up with the racist comments too, so he just patched Ryou up and told us we could go," Lettuce said. "He's nice."

"That sounds like 'too nice for his own good', but it's for the best," Yuki said. "I think Kisshu and Pai would be very sad if you girls were in jail."

"We could just teleport them out," Kisshu said. "But I wouldn't want Koneko-chan to go to jail."

"Good," Yuki said. "Ichigo, Lettuce, I had two rooms set up for you, and your things were brought to them, but you're welcome to share with Kisshu and Pai if you want. After the weddings, you'll get different rooms that are better suited for two people."

"Thanks Yuki," Ichigo said. "I like sharing with Kish."

Kisshu smirked and said, "I like sharing with you too. You're fluffy."

Ichigo and the others started laughing. "Fluffy?" Ichigo giggled. "That's funny, Kish. You're warm and cuddly."

Kisshu turned red as the others started laughing. "Relax, it's a good thing," Ichigo said.

"Can we talk about something else now?" Kisshu asked. "Like maybe food?"

"Aw, is someone hungry?" Yuki asked, still giggling.

"Yes…" Kisshu said. "Pai wouldn't let me eat in the control room, so I haven't eaten in NINE WHOLE HOURS!"

"You're getting spoiled," Pai commented. "You used to be able to go two days without anything to eat, and now you can't even go nine hours?"

"I may have been able to go two days without food, but as I recall, that was everyone's worst nightmare," Kisshu said. "I got so grouchy that I nearly killed Kino when he called me a 'potted plant'. Not that he wouldn't have deserved it…."

"That was a nightmare," Yuki said dryly. "There's some fruit in the kitchen, have some of that. It'll be dinnertime soon anyways. Pai and I will show the girls around."

"Mom, that's going to take at least an hour, can't we just show them how to get to their rooms?" Pai asked.

Yuki sighed. "All the bedrooms are on the second floor, so let's just show them how to get there, and save the tour for tomorrow," she said.

"Okay," Pai said. He looked at Kisshu, and said, "Are you coming?"

"I'm hungry…." Kisshu said.

Ichigo giggled and said, "Go eat, Kish. Pai and Yuki can show us around, right?"

"Yup," Pai said. Kisshu perked up and teleported off. Pai sighed and asked, "Should we show you your rooms?"

"Sure, thanks," Lettuce said.

Yuki smiled and said, "The staircase to the second floor is just down this hallway." She led the way down the hallway outside the family room, and then up a wide staircase. When they reached the second floor, Yuki went to a door on the left side of the hall, and said, "Ichigo, this is your room." She opened the door, revealing a pink room with a huge bed, a walk-in closet, and its own bathroom. There was a wooden dresser, a desk, a bookshelf, and a nightstand with a lamp. Ichigo's suitcases and backpack were neatly arranged at the end of the bed.

"Wow…." Ichigo said. "Yuki, this is amazing!"

Yuki smiled. "I'm glad you like it. Kisshu told me your favorite color is pink, so I tried to make your room similar to what he described- after lecturing him on stalking, of course."

Ichigo giggled. "Is Lettuce's room green?" she asked.

"Come see," Yuki said. She led the way across the hall to another room, and opened the door. This room was spring green, and was similar to Ichigo's, except she had two bookcases as opposed to one. Her suitcases were at the end of the bed as well.

"Yuki, this is great, thank you!" Lettuce said.

"Sure," Yuki said. "Pai got lectured on stalking too, though. He admitted that he spent hours every other night watching you sleep."

Ichigo and Lettuce looked at Pai, who was pretty red, and giggled. "Pai, what does your room look like?" Ichigo asked.

"Um…." Pai said.

"Did you forget to clean it before leaving?" Yuki asked sternly.

"Maybe…." Pai said uncomfortably.

"Go clean your room, I'll keep showing the girls around," Yuki said sternly. "I'm sure you don't want Lettuce to see your usual pigsty, right?"

Pai flinched and said, "Not really…. I'll go clean my room." He teleported off.

Kisshu teleported in soon after, looking pleased with himself. "Hey, where'd Pai go?" he asked.

"He had to clean his room," Yuki said.

"I cleaned mine before we left," Kisshu said. "I thought Pai did too."

"Apparently he forgot," Yuki said. "Why don't you show the girls your room while Pai's cleaning?"

"Okay," Kisshu said. "What will you be doing?"

"Oh, you'll see," Yuki said sweetly, and teleported off.

"I hate it when she uses that voice; it almost always means that I'm in for some really unpleasant surprise," Kisshu said. "One time when I was little, she used that voice, and the next thing I knew, I had to spend two hours at Kino's house."

"Who's Kino?" Ichigo asked.

"The worst fighter the military academy ever saw," Kisshu said. "And the most evil jerk on the planet. We hated each other on sight, and he never missed an opportunity to make me miserable. The only good thing that came out of him harassing me was that he spent so much time doing that as opposed to training that he failed the military's entrance exams six times, until they finally kicked him out. I, on the other hand, passed with the highest score in the history of the academy on my first try. Boy was he mad. Gloating about that was pretty fun, actually."

"Jeez Kish, you must be amazing," Ichigo said. "Is that why you were sent to Earth first?"

"Yup," Kisshu said. "Hideki-sama informed Deep Blue when he first appeared that I was the best warrior our people had ever seen, even though I was fourteen at the time. So I got sent to Earth first, and that turned out to be a good thing, because if it had been someone else, Deep Blue might have had an easier time of taking over."

"Wow…" Ichigo said softly. "Hey, can we see your room now?"

Kisshu smiled. "Sure Koneko-chan," he said. "It's actually next door to yours. I think Aunt Yuki did that on purpose."

"Cool!" Ichigo said happily. Kisshu smirked and led the way to his room. He opened the door, and went in, followed by the girls.

His room was a nice grass green, and basically everything in there was green or black. He had a huge bed with forest green blankets and black pillowcases, a black nightstand with a spring green lamp, a black dresser, a green bookshelf, and a large desk that looked like it was made of mahogany. He also had a walk-in closet and his own bathroom. "I don't get to spend much time in here, but it's relaxing when I do," Kisshu said. "Now that I'm getting married, I should have more time at home, though."

"Why don't you have a lot of time here?" Ichigo asked.

"I was appointed General of the Cyniclonian Army after coming back here and healing the planet," Kisshu said. "I originally didn't want that, though, so I made a deal with Hideki-sama. The deal was that I would be General until I married you. If, when you were of age and you still didn't want to be with me, I would remain in that position. If you agreed to be my wife, I would have no further obligation to that position after the wedding. And that's a good thing, because all the weekly meetings and stuff are irritating."

"Does that mean you'll still have meetings before the wedding?" Ichigo asked.

"No," Kisshu said. "Before Pai and I left, I trained another guy who I felt had the skill to take my place, and he'll be there instead of me. I get to show you and Lettuce around, and help you get used to how things work, since Pai won't be able to get as much time off as I have."

"What will Pai be doing?" Lettuce asked.

"He's in charge of the Agricultural Science Lab," Kisshu said. "He doesn't have an assistant, though, so I think he might ask you to be his assistant."

"Why doesn't he have an assistant?" Lettuce asked.

"My guess is that no one matches up to you," Kisshu said. "Pai spent a lot of time stalking you, just like I did with Ichigo. He knows more about you than you'd think."

"Did Taruto stalk Pudding?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"No, he just made a rather freaky shrine to her," Kisshu said. "It's a tiny little room that's got the walls and ceiling plastered in pictures of her that he either drew himself or made me draw, and there's a table in the middle of the room with a box that has a lock of her hair in it. He's got a bunch of yellow candles in there too, and some incense."

"That's CREEPY," Ichigo said, shuddering. "I didn't know he was THAT obsessed."

"He doesn't know that I know," Kisshu said. "Pai doesn't know either, and neither do Aunt Yuki and Uncle Hayako."

"Wow…." Ichigo and Lettuce said.

They heard a knock on the door, and Kisshu called, "Come in!"

Pai opened the door, and said, "Mom said dinner's ready; come downstairs."

"What are we having?" Kisshu asked, as he and the girls followed Pai back downstairs.

"She didn't say," Pai said. He led the way to the dining room, and opened the door, then went in.

The others followed him in, and were startled to see the room was decorated, with a banner saying, 'Welcome, Ichigo and Lettuce!'

"Do you like it?" Yuki asked.

"This is so nice, thank you Yuki," Ichigo said.

Yuki smiled and said, "We're waiting on my husband, and then we can eat."

"I'm here," a Cyniclon man said, coming into the room. He looked at Ichigo and Lettuce, and said, "You can both call me Hayako."

"Thanks," Ichigo said. "I'm Ichigo, nice to meet you."

"Hi, I'm Lettuce," Lettuce said. "It's nice to meet you."

Hayako smiled, then turned to Yuki and asked, "Can we eat now?"

"You sound like Kisshu," Yuki giggled. "Of course we can eat. Come sit down, all of you."

The others came over, and Kisshu sat down, Ichigo sitting next to him. Yuki sat down on Kisshu's other side, and Hayako sat at the head of the table. Pai sat at the end, and Lettuce sat next to him. The food was already set out, and they started passing around a bowl of pasta with some kind of creamy sauce, and a plate of what looked like fried chicken. "This is really good," Ichigo commented.

"I'm glad you like it," Yuki said. "Kisshu brought back a bunch of cookbooks from Earth, and we've started eating Earth food as well as what we were eating before. He's gotten pretty good at cooking."

"Kish, you can cook?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah," Kisshu said. "I had to learn because Taruto was too lazy and Pai can't go into a kitchen without destroying it. And since I was on Earth, I learned how to cook Earth foods. I used to borrow cookbooks from Keiichiro- not that he was aware of it. And after a while, I started going out at night to steal cookbooks that I could keep. When we came back here, I just took the whole collection with me."

"That's really cool, Kish," Ichigo said.

"You think so?" Kisshu asked.

"Yup," Ichigo said, smiling.

A while later, they were done with dinner, and Kisshu asked, "Koneko-chan, should we go back to your room?"

"Sure," Ichigo said.

Kisshu smiled and took her hand, then teleported to her room. "Do you want help unpacking?" he asked.

"That would be great," Ichigo said. "I do have a lot of luggage."

Kisshu smiled and opened one of her suitcases, then said, "Let's get to work."

They started sorting her clothes into the drawers of her dresser, and as they worked, Kisshu asked, "Do you want me to show you around town tomorrow?"

"I'd love that," Ichigo said.

"If Pai's too busy, we might be bringing Lettuce, but I'm sure you don't mind, right?" Kisshu asked.

"Not at all," Ichigo replied. "We're good friends, and I like spending time with her."

"Good," Kisshu said. "I'm hoping Pai will be able to show her around, though; I want to spend more time with you." He smirked when Ichigo blushed, and then said, "I should warn you, some people might ask you if they can touch your ears."

"Why?" Ichigo asked.

"To see what they feel like," Kisshu said. "Your ears are different than ours, obviously, and it makes people curious. Don't worry about it; you can say no if you don't want someone to touch your ears, and it's highly unlikely people will do it without permission."

"Okay," Ichigo said. They finished unpacking, and Ichigo asked, "Do you want to sleep together again?"

"Yeah, but can we sleep in my room?" Kisshu asked.

"You don't like this one?" Ichigo asked.

"It's not that, I just haven't slept in my room in a while," Kisshu said.

"Okay," Ichigo said. "I don't mind which room we sleep in. I'll get my pajamas."

"You can change and get ready; I'm going to my room to do the same," Kisshu said. "It's the next door down, okay?"

"Okay," Ichigo said. Kisshu left, and Ichigo started getting ready for bed.

**I think I'll put the tour of the town in the next chapter. I really have no excuse for updating this late, so I'm sorry. But here's a question: whose wedding should be first? Review and tell me!**


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